Field
Embodiments of the disclosure relate to oil and gas recovery. In particular, embodiments of the disclosure relate to gel compositions useful in downhole applications.
Description of the Related Art
Hemiaminal and aminal polymers have been reported to undergo pH responsive phase change and network rearrangements giving them promise as recyclable plastics, self-healing polymers, and stimulus-responsive materials. In addition to pH responsiveness, hemiaminal gels also show dynamics through aminal/thiol-exchange.
Constitutionally dynamic materials (CDMs) are classified by their utilization of reversible covalent and/or non-covalent bonding such that they are able to undergo modifications to their constitutions through the dissociation and re-association of their constituent building blocks. This attribute helps allow for accessing triggered release, reversible gels, and self-healing composites. The monomeric units of CDMs are brought together through reversible molecular bonding or supramolecular bonding (which is inherently reversible).
CDMs generated by the reversible covalent association of organic and organometallic building blocks are marked by stronger bonding than their supramolecular counterparts and have the additional flexibility of access to a greater variety of dynamic chemical reactions. An assortment of different reversible reactions has been investigated in this class of materials. These include reversible hydrazone formation, reversible Schiff base formation, reversible aminal formation, Diels-Alder condensations, disulfide exchange, dithioacetal exchange, dynamic boronic ester formation, olefin metathesis, and metal-ligand association.
Both constitutional and motional covalent dynamic chemistries have been demonstrated through reversible imine formation and the transformation of imines into aminals. Experiments have demonstrated that the complexation of certain transition metals to condensation products of polyamines and aldehydes can result in a switch from the aminal condensation product to the Schiff base. The transformative potential of certain metals in the presence of aminals could permit for networked polymers endowed with uniquely dynamic rheological and dielectric properties. These properties are of certain utility in the drilling, construction, and remediation of oil and gas producing wells.
In oil field services, completion fluids can be defined as those fluids used to flush potentially formation damaging materials from the wellbore after drilling and before casing perforation. Damaging materials include drilling fluid additives, such as fluid loss agents, on the formation face, solid cuttings and clays from formations entrained in the drilling fluid and deposited on the face of a formation, and filter cake on the formation left from the drilling fluid. The filter cake typically contains solid materials from drilling fluid additive residue from the drilling fluid along with the filter base (depending on the oil or water base of the fluid). Completion fluids control well pressure, prevent the collapse of tubing from overpressure, and provide fluid loss control. Fluid loss control agents can be added to the bulk completion fluid or supplied as a pill. Typical fluid loss pills are oil-soluble resins, calcium carbonate, and ground salt. These material are known to cause formation damage, which can significantly reduce production levels by decreasing the permeability of formations.
Gravel packing is used to control sand migration from the formation into the wellbore in both open hole and perforated casing situations. In the case of casing gravel pack completion, it is inserted at a specified location within a perforated wellbore. Conventional gravel packing uses a fine sand or gravel in a fluid viscosified or gelled with a polymer such as uncrosslinked hydroxyethyl cellulose, hydroxypropyl guar, xanthan gum, or similar. The thickener thickens or gels the fluid to allow the sand to pack the perforations before it compacts. After packing, the fluids or gels are then thinned or broken and recovered in order to allow the settlement of the sand to properly pack the annulus. The gels are converted to fluids by breakers, which are often chemical agents.
The gravel pack that remains is designed to be highly permeable but also blocks any formation sand from passing into the wellbore and only allows for the passage of fluids. If a thickening agent is not used or if it thins too early the result can be premature “sand-out” which is caused by bridging of the settled particles across the tubing. A viscosified fluid or gel with an infinite gravel settling rate is required in highly deviated wells. This assures that the gravel carried to the production zone in a highly deviated wellbore would not settle out. Cellulose derivatives are preferred viscosifiers as they render only a limited amount of water insoluble particles or residues when they degrade. These polymers are known to degrade at temperatures exceeding 200° F. Therefore, effective reversible thickeners and gelling agents are of certain utility in well sections exceeding 200° F.
Workover fluids are typically used in cleaning and repairing old wells to increase production. Completion, workover, and kill fluids are typically designed to prevent fluid from the formation intrusion into the wellbore while preventing wellbore fluid leakoff. Leakoff is the loss of fluid form the wellbore into the formation. Fluid leakoff is known to cause formation damage which can potentially reduce hydrocarbon recovery. Formation damage can be manifested as reduced permeability of the formation or the reaction of an aqueous fluid with minerals, such as clays, in the formation.
During perforation, it is necessary to inhibit fluids from entering and damaging the formation. Fluid loss agents typically used to meet these ends are water insoluble, oil soluble waxes, soaps, gels, and various other types of polymers. Another type of treatment fluid is comprised of finely ground solids dispersed in a fluid. The solids can be guar-coated silica flour, crushed oyster shells, crushed limestone, or rock salt.
To prevent fluid leakoff, lost circulation materials, are often added to wellbore construction fluids. These additives are designed with the purpose of preventing the communication of wellbore fluids with the formation. Conventional lost circulation materials may be inapplicable to water sensitive formations or formations with low fracture gradients. Cross-linked polymer gels have shown certain advantages over conventional completion, kill fluid, and workover fluid additives because of their enhanced fluid loss control in high permeability formations. The difficulty with many gels is that formation damage can be caused by the gels as they are often difficult to remove. If the gels are made fully reversible with an effective gel breaker, this formation damage issue may no longer be problematic in the use of gels in these kinds of fluids.
Problems in drilling and completion practices include well blowouts caused by the escape of hydrogen sulfide (H2S), other gases, and light hydrocarbons. These events lead to serious costs and safety hazards to field personnel and well operators. The conventional method to mitigate H2S-related events is to disperse solid particles such as iron oxide or zinc carbonate in aqueous brine weighted fluids to react with H2S. The difficulty with this practice is that the brines are no longer free of solids as their intended purpose would be so as to avoid potential formation damage. Non-aqueous fluids, such as N-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP), are known to have a high capacity for H2S absorption. Fluids based with NMP have been previously proposed for use in wells with H2S to minimize well blowouts for this property.